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tv   France 24  LINKTV  August 20, 2015 5:30am-6:01am PDT

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it is 1:00 in paris. you are watching "france 24." u.k. have signed a new security deal in a bid to curb the migrant crisis in calais. let's tune into the press conference given by the french interior minister. criticizing foreign governments for allegedly doing nothing. describing migrants as insurgents and profiteers. call for border controls reintroduced. particular, the french and
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u.k. border. we have heard too much talk in recent weeks. we need to assume responsibility and choose firmness, as well as a humane approach. we will seek to implement solutions to control migrant flows, welcome migrants in a humane way, live up to our obligations in respect to asylum-seekers, but also find arecriminal gangs that involved in human trafficking. in action cannot consist isolated national reactions, but in a concerted reaction among european countries.
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the deep meaning of the attitude adopted by the british and french governments and i would like to thank warmly my british counterpart, with whom we have been working in full confidence. the joint statement we have both just signed on behalf of our two governments is a new and important illustration of this cooperation between france and the seriousuired by situation we face. since last summer, our two governments have acted in a determined manner to come up with a reaction that is appropriate, given the migrant crisis. i have come to calais several times myself in the last few months to supervise the implementation of what has been
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decided and to make sure things are implemented. intention, next week, to come back with the european commissioner and we will tackle issues we are dealing with today and other ones that belong to the humanitarian and economic to mansion -- dimension i have just discussed with the mayor of calais and the local mp. i would like to answer their concerns for the french government. our program is constructive. we are listening to local authorities and looking for solutions to curb the problem that requires a right deal of pragmatism. i must say, first of all, that we have improved the conditions under which migrants are welcomed, though i realize a lot has yet to be done. the french government has funded
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the setting up of an operation of welcome, as well as the calais townhall that has provided a premises. local associations are also involved in running this welcoming center. the european union is also providing two thirds of the funding. the center can provide 2000 meals per day and allow migrants to take showers and have access. there is also help for women and children, who are in a highly nerablee position -- vul position. thate also making sure migrants who are seeking asylum
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are able to do that in calais. they will be given housing outside calais, rather than trying to use the euro tunnel route, which is dangerous, if not fatal often. hundreds of migrants have been able to live in paris. we have called on the european union to make a financial contribution so that they can help us provide places for the migrants who choose this request, as well as the to set up a camping site and a welcoming zone. two will be in calais soon to assess our approach and determine how much financial contribution the european commission will provide. arepolice forces determinedly fighting criminal
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human trafficking organizations. moving migrants up to the u.k. have been dismantled since the beginning thehe year, versus 14 in full year of 2014. the police force in france has also been far more successful in france. no fewer than 500 traffickers have been arrested since january. than last yeare over the same period. the french and british authorities have acted jointly to improve the safety installations in calais. the british government has euros to15 million
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improve the security of the euro tunnel railhead in calais. the french government has stepped up the number of policeman in the area. 1300n all, we have side.man on the calais 500 are reinforcements from the french government. 7.5 mobile place units , which have been deployed in calais. i would like to hail the men and women of the law enforcement forces carrying out their mission under difficult conditions to prevent migrants from trying to break into the tunnel. this is also an extremely dangerous temptation for migrants. too many people have died or
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been seriously injured in the tunnel. , thes to these police number of migrants attempting to break through the tunnel has decreased drastically. thank the euro tunnel. i appreciate the quality of the cooperation that has been forged between euro tunnel and the french police forces. the determined action by police forces has saved lives and enabled criminals to be arrested, as i have already said. this has led to more than 1000 who have been taken back to the borders. firmed to be extremely with respect to people who are in a legal situation.
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that is also a common feature of our policy. we have decided to step up our cooperation with respect to security, fighting criminal gangs, but we have also decided to widen our cooperation to new fields, in particular the humanitarian welcome of migrants . that is the purpose of the joint statement we have just signed. what are the main features of this agreement? first of all, it is an attempt to improve security on the euro tunnel, as well as the calle harbor -- calais harbor. france has stepped up the number of policeman. british government is going to provide sophisticated resources to enhance the security around the euro tunnel. work is already started, in fact
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. we were able to see it when we visited the site this morning. cctv and detection devices have been deployed. usedeuro tunnel has also haveional resources and we just signed an agreement with its ceo. the french government intends to particularunnel, in thanks to the security order carried out last week. we also need to improve the quality of cooperation between british and french police forces to fight more efficiently human traffickers, to fight the international criminal and humanons trafficking organizations, as i have said.
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we need to ensure that our cooperation is improved. we have appointed two senior commanders to that point. i will jointly set up unified dismantlingd at human trafficking gangs. a control and command center will be set up with french and forces who will a daily basis. the calais center will be supported by the center in t great britain. this will allow us to be even more efficient in fighting human trafficking gangs. as i have already stated, our cooperation will not be restricted to security
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operations, but we also talked about the humanitarian aspect. we would like to improve the way in which women and children, who are in a highly vulnerable , ination, are welcomed particular. they are in the hands of human trafficking networks. with respect to migrants who cannot apply for asylum, our governments would like to facilitate voluntary departures to home countries in cooperation with french and british ngos. we also need to improve information. housingto find those outside calais who would like to benefit from humanitarian protection and accelerate the pace at which their requests are processed. all of these missions are expensive and i would like to warmly think the british government that it is going to provide financial support for two years.
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we are already talking about 35 million euros that the united kingdom has already provided to improve the security and the humanitarian situation in calais . i really would like to thank my british counterpart. >> it seems the major commitments are two governments are taking to react here in the calais area and south of england to impact the migrant crisis that is affecting the whole of europe. i would like to hail theresa may and the british government for the quality of the deal that has been formed between our two governments. british relyd the on medium-term solutions to the crisis and the need to be looked for at a european and international level. suffer from the
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consequences of this crisis on both sides of the english channel. that is why we are going to work with other member states and other organizations. we want to work with germany to achieve progress in terms of migrant policy in europe, as well as fighting illegal immigration. after this press conference, i abouto to berlin to talk these issues with my german counterpart. our meeting will also lead to a joint statement. the effective implementation of hotspots for migrants in greece and italy, enabling the authorities to register them and make a distinction between migrants who need protection and illegal migrants, is one of the main conditions that france and germany are looking to
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accelerate. france and the united kingdom send qualifiedl and experienced staff in order to ensure that we achieve progress on sending back migrants. france and the united kingdom are calling for dialogs to be set up with home countries of migrants. this will be the case in niger, where the international migration organization will run, thanks to european financing. we will work for such a center
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to be set up at least in africa to help us sufficiently fight human trafficking organizations. are set up to help. 2014, we made suggestions that are inspiring what we are talking about today. we need to move on to implementing these ideas. cannt to ensure that we implement them in such a manner to ensure that action, from now on, will be a driving force in terms of finding solutions. we have analyzed, we have made proposals, we now need to implement these policies. before giving the floor to theresa may, i'm convinced she
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will want to talk about what we are doing together, allow me to remind you what we said in 2014. queen of england during her state visit to paris she said, our two countries were celebrating the 100th anniversary of their alliance, two countriesour cannot afford to lose their unity with respect to the crises we face. haveieve, theresa, that we followed the wise recommendation made 11 years ago by your queen. once again, i would like to , and on a as a friend
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personal level, for your constant commitment in favor of solidarity and cooperation between france and the united kingdom. >> thank you very much for your comments. this has been a particularly difficult summer for people on either side of the channel. a high level of migrant activity haserbated by flight action caused disruption for local residents in calais and southern england, as well as the lorry drivers and holidaymakers. our work to address these challenges has been helped by the strong, frank, and collaborative relationship we share. for many months, there have been a number of people crossing the mediterranean and it has grown. we have been working together closely and we are determined to
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solve these problems together. efforts are working. the additional deployments of french police and the extra fencing, search dogs, and other security measures provided by the u.k. have stabilized the number of attempts to reach our border controls -- breach our border controls. the declaration we have signed cements the comprehensive program of work that our two countries have undertaken and it takes it further. by committing the u.k. and france to a thorough security program in calais and southern england, combined with the continued, unprecedented french police presence in the region. this will include further security desk physical security improvements in and around the tunnel and wider poor areas -- this will include further security improvements in and around the tunnel and wider port areas.
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the situation we are facing in calais is the result of a global migration challenge and that is why our two countries will continue to work closely together to make sure the rest of the european union and the transit through which migrants are coming are also playing their part in solving this problem. we must also relentlessly pursue and disrupt the calais criminal gangs that facilitate -- callous criminal gangs that facilitate and profit from the trafficking of people, often with disregard for their lives. today, we commit to even greater cooperation to combat this organized criminality. we have formalized arrangements on intelligence sharing, coordinated operations on both ides of the channel, and joined work to bring prosecutions.
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we will appoint commanders to direct the law enforcement response against the criminal gangs, create single liaison ,oint for intelligence sharing and establish a joint command and control center in calais. welcome the french government's efforts to manage the migrant population in calais , particularly in providing humanitarian relief and a fast-track process for asylum applications. it is imperative that we protect the most vulnerable people. we are committing to put in place a joint program to ensure that the vulnerable migrants or those who are victims of trafficking are quickly identified, removed to a place of safety, and offered advice and support. this includes assistance with any claims of asylum in france or to enable them to gain access
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to support arrangements for victims of human trafficking. we will also take forward our joint work to return economic migrants to their home countries and have agreed to immediately establish a joint project team to maximize the number of returns, pooling our diplomatic and logistical expertise. always countries will thosee a haven for seeking refuge from persecution or conflict. we recognize the special circumstances of calais as the closest port to the u.k. and have agreed that the u.k. will provide france with additional expertise, capacity, and additional funding in support. the long-term answer to this is
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to reduce the number of migrants making the dangerous journey across the mediterranean. this means working with our european union and international partners to target development aid and increase investment. we need to help source and transit countries develop economic opportunities, fight the criminal networks that facilitate smuggling, and return people to their home countries more easily. that is why this declaration commits us to tackling not just the immediate problems, but to look for their -- further upstream. we want to ensure fully functioning external borders and an asylum system that is resistant to abuse. we want to crack down on the organized crime gangs smuggling people into europe. the agreement we have signed today, the communication, shows
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a comprehensive program of activity to deal with the problems that we see here in calais, but which start further afield. i would simply like to end by , thank bernard, to you you for the strength you have shown in relation to this issue and for the excellent cooperation we have developed between france and the u.k., cooperation which has been reinforced by our communication today and cooperation, which i know all those working on both sides of the channel to deal with this issue, will take forward comprehensively with great effect. thank you. first, a french question. french]king anchor: all right, you have just been listening to the joint press conference. for more analysis on this
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conference, let's bring in our international affairs editor. august, they1st of will meet with the european commissioner and local mps in calais to talk about further solutions and namely to set up a welcoming center for migrants. yes, both of them were speaking at some length about security measures that have been introduced, much as by this new agreement, as in the previous weeks. one of the criticisms that has been made about the situation in calais is that the conditions in which asylum-seekers and other migrants have had to live in in calais have been appalling. is thathas been saying the efforts are now going to be made that the conditions in live will be considerably better in the
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future, particularly for the most vulnerable, for women and for children, who have been prey to traffickers. anchor: they also said they would step up police forces in calais. there are already 1300 policemen deployed. we have seen over the summer some police violence. this is what some associations have been reporting -- police violence against migrants. are there fears of more violence? rob: yes, in a situation like this, in which there are nightly attempts to break through the security barriers and get on to the trucks that are going into the tunnel and those trying to get onto the train, clearly, there are going to be occasional clashes between security forces and those trying to break through the security measures. the hope will be that these will be contained and that there will not be excessive force used. occasionally, it will happen. the important thing is to make sure that incidents which get
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out of hand are kept to an absolute minimum. that restraint is shown on all sides. over the past few months, it does appear the situation is much more under control than it was a month ago, when there were somewhere in the region of 2000 attempts to break through into the euro tunnel every evening. now it is down to about 150. the organization of the security effort by the french and british police and the euro tunnel >> the following program is an
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original production of link tv. >> thrup on the wall, they're keeping an eye owe. uncle sam keeps an eye on you. here sharon keeps an eye on

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